"The films 'Beloved' by Toni Morrison 'Shoah' by Claude Lanzmann are both ideal venues for exploring the value of literature. 'Beloved' is about slavery while 'Shoah' is about the Holocaust. The importance of literature lies in the meaning of living in a world of language. The films explained this importance by tampering with the relation between language and the real. Both films brought to life the impossible and unspeakable and repeated past stories whose truths were significantly and intentionally altered to connect the past and the present to the discovery of personal identities." [Expanded Academic Index]

"Talk-show host Oprah Winfrey, who is coproducer of this film, should never have cast herself in the title role. She is very good in some scenes, but she is never startlingly overwhelming. Her emphasis on the empowering supportive spiritual female, meanwhile, unbalances the film. The film does capture, however, the theme of Toni Morrison's novel on which it is based: that once people become accustomed to slavery, freedom becomes frightening and strange.
[Art Index]

"Jonathan Demme's film of Toni Morrison's Beloved mostly does justice to the novel's nuance, depth, density, and terror. It stars Oprah Winfrey as a 19th-century slave mother, who tries to kill her three children when caught trying to escape from Kentucky and is apparently successful with one, a nameless girl later buried under a headstone marked with the word "Beloved." A ghost story--perhaps--of oozing rot, cruelty, eeriness, dreadful violence, and poisonous sexuality set in a cul-de-sac of fear and delusion, Beloved's strength lies in its portrayal of the experience of slavery. Its weakness may lie in seeking to achieve too much dignity." [Art Index]

"Defying the recent trend for mediocre remakes of movie classics, director Jonathan Demme's reimagining of the the conspiracy thriller The Manchurian Candidate is a strong and substantial work. By updating the dramatic context of the film from the Korean War to the first Gulf War and making the villains shadowy corporations instead of communist bad guys, Demme's remake taps into current affairs. Denzel Washington gives a pleasingly contained performance and Meryl Streep is terrific as Shaw's mother. Although Demme includes some visual allusions to John Frankenheimer's original film, stylistically his remake belongs to a post-MTV age of jump cuts and soundbites." [Art Index]

"A review of The Manchurian Candidate, a film directed by Jonathan Demme. A remake of a 1962 film that centered on a convoluted communist plot to take over the United States presidency through brainwashing and assassination, this film offers a nondescript mise-en-scene for its narrative action. Usually outstanding in almost any of their screen roles, the leading players, Denzel Washington, Meryl Streep, and Liev Schreiber, play their parts functionally, providing little that appears incisively personal or memorable. The particularly striking thing about this remake is that is almost completely lacks the verbal wit and visual comedy that played with and against the terrors of the 1962 version." [Art Index]

Jonathan Demme's "The Manchurian Candidate" criticizes the multinational corporations who profit from war. The multi-layered movie depicts the constant barrage of television coverage of political events and news reports.

Thrupkaew, Noy.

"Costume psychodramas: a new Manchurian Candidate labors under today's partisan imperatives, while a censored Iranian blockbuster mixes art and politics more deftly.(Currents)(Marmoulak)(Movie Review)." The American Prospect 15.9 (Sept 2004): 33(3).

"Jonathan Demme's Philadelphia marks Hollywood's belated entry into the territory of AIDS. Demme's "soft" interpretation of the issue will probably prompt the most vociferous criticism, yet there is much that makes it a progressive film. For example, its depiction of AIDS as a series of setbacks and reprieves is more realistic than the steady, romantic decline into easeful death of many past AIDS films." [Art Index]

"A review of Philadelphia, directed by Jonathan Demme. The film concerns Andrew Beckett, a successful gay lawyer who claims that he was dismissed from his firm because his bosses have discovered that he has AIDS. Filing a discrimination suit against his employers, Beckett secures the counsel of attorney Joe Miller, who must confront not only Beckett's bigoted employers but also his own fear of homosexuality and AIDS. This is a predictable attempt in the tradition of films that aim to present personal narratives of prejudice and civil rights discrimination in clearly defined moral terms, yet it is different because it cannot totally denounce the social prejudice and bigotry it seeks to expose. Offered as an in-depth psychological portrait of a gay man, the film is merely a representation of a character with a deadly disease; attempting to do away with the issue of homosexuality, it refuses to invest Beckett with life, and by linking his victory with his death, the implications of the trial for the gay community are depoliticized. Ultimately, as homophobia and the fear of AIDS is still a socially pervasive and popular attitude, the film cannot make up its mind about the communities it feels obliged to champion." [Art Index]

"Heros and Brothers in Love: The Male Homosexual as Lawyer in Popular Culture." Studies in Law, Politics, and Society, 1998, 18, 3-27

"Examines the representation of homosexuality & the law, drawing on an analysis of two films, Basil Dearden's Victim (1961) & Jonathan Demme's Philadelphia (1993). It is suggested that, in both films, the main gay characters are allowed to embody the law. However, these characters obtain a paradoxical inside/outside position in relation to the law in which they serve as passing agents standing in place of the law. This is both a representation of law as masquerade & one of the gay male outside the law. The latter implies a form of civil death, best illustrated by the withering of Beckett's body in the courtroom in Philadelphia. Though these films are rare in mainstream cinema, they are important in that they portray the homosexual lawyer as hero & reveal the law as a homosocial institution. Moreover, in tackling the relationship between desire, erotics, gender, sexuality, & the law, both films presage a scholarly agenda in legal studies that has only recently emerged." [Sociological Abstracts]

A review of Jonathan Demme's Philadephia, starring Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington. The film centers on the corrosive effects of homophobia on the American democratic tradition of equal rights under the law. However, Demme's rather tentative handling of the film's "gay" material suggests that he is uncomfortable with thoughts of homosexuality.

"The odd couple. (critical appreciation of the film 'Philadelphia')." Sight and Sound 4.n3 (March 1994): 24(2).

"'Philadelphia,' the first major Hollywood movie on AIDS, conveys the reactions of society to an AIDS-afflicted white male homosexual. Director Jonathan Demme has been criticized for his portrayal of single-dimensional characters. Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington are two totally different characters, and the ostracized Hanks is helped by the reluctantly sympathetic black lawyer. The film clearly shows that homophobia and racism exist in American society." [Expanded Academic Index]

"The Aesthetics of Serial Killing: Working against Ethics in The Silence of the Lambs (1988) and American Psycho." Atlantis: Revista de la Asociacion Espanola de Estudios Anglo-Norteamericanos. 24 (2): 7-24. 2002 Dec.

Likens Clarice Starling's mission in "The silence of the lambs" to that of Marlow in Conrad's 'Heart of darkness', and draws parallels between her relationship with Hannibal Lecter and that of Plato and Socrates in 'Symposium'.

Donald, Adrienne.

"Working for Oneself: Labor and Love in The Silence of the Lambs." In: The movies: texts, receptions, exposures / edited by Laurence Goldstein and Ira Konigsberg. pp: 60-74. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, c1996.

Main Stack PN1994.M78 1996

Moffitt PN1994.M78 1996

Dubois, Diane.

"'Seeing the Female Body Differently': Gender Issues in The Silence of the Lambs." Journal of Gender Studies. 10(3):297-310. 2001 Nov

"In this paper it is argued that the habitual representation of women in film has played a considerable part in constructing ideas of femininity, which contemporary filmmaking can deconstruct. The Silence of the Lambs deconstructs femininity as it has been constructed in four classic genres: the serial killer movie, the horror or monster movie, the 'pupil and mentor' movie and the 'psychiatrist and patient' movie. The Silence of the Lambs can be shown to deconstruct the generic amalgam of voyeurism, the 'male gaze' of the camera, castration anxiety and the confused and reinstated gender identities typical of the serial killer movie. The empathy between Doctor Hannibal 'the cannibal' Lecter and young FBI agent Clarice Starling criticises the encoding strategies of the classic monster movie wherein both woman and monster are feared objects within patriarchal orders of seeing. Starling's appetite for success coincides with Lecter's more obviously worrying appetite; the film deconstructs those films wherein the ambition of the female pupil is personified by a demonic mentor. Starling, unlike most female pupils, is not punished for her ambition and strength, qualities partially created through the iconographic meanings of actor Jodie Foster. In psychiatrist and patient films, the heroine's behaviour is explainable when located within the patriarchal metanarrative of psychoanalysis, towards which The Silence of the Lambs is deeply ambivalent." [Ingenta]

Dyer, Richard

"Kill and kill again." (portrayal of serial killers in film and television) Sight and Sound Sept 1997 v7 n9 p14(4)

"'Millennium' by Chris Carter is one of the most recent television releases on serial killers. Motion pictures have consistently portrayed the serial killer in films such as 'M', 'The Silence of the Lambs' and 'Psycho'. More recent releases have focused on the identification of the pattern in serial killing, notably 'Se7en' and 'Copycat'. The role of women in the serial killer movie is discussed, along with the portrayal of police detection." [Expanded Academic Index]

Fahy, Thomas.

"Killer Culture: Classical Music and the Art of Killing in Silence of the Lambs and Se7en." Journal of Popular Culture. 37(1):28-42. 2003 Aug

"Deposing an American Cultural Totem: Clarice Starling and Postmodern Heroism in Thomas Harris's Red Dragon, The Silence of the Lambs, and Hannibal."
Journal of Popular Culture, Volume 38, Number 5, August 2005, pp. 819-833(15)

"Objecting to Objectification: Re-Viewing the Feminine in The Silence of the Lambs." Journal of
Popular Culture. 27(4):1-12. 1994 Spring

An analysis of the treatment of women in society in Jonathan Demme's film 'The Silence of the Lambs' emphasizes that women should be treated as people, not objects. Clarice Starling, frequently objectified by her male colleagues, treats Dr. Lecter as an individual rather than a case study. Starling's experiences with male objectification enable her to empathize with serial killer Buffalo Bill's victims, and to use a combination of intelligence and feminine intuition to gain valuable information that helps her solve the case.

Greenberg, Harvey Roy

"Psychotherapy at the Simplex. Le plus ça shrink." Journal of Popular Film and Television Vol XX nr 2 (Summer 1992); p 9-15.

Considers Hollywood's fascination with the psychiatrist figure, and comments on depictions in three recent successes: "The silence of the lambs", "What about Bob?" and "The prince of tides".

Author's Abstract: COPYRIGHT 2002 Association for the Advancement of Psychotherapy "This paper examines the psychopathology of Hannibal Lecter, the fictional killer and cannibal in Thomas Harris's trilogy: Red Dragon, Silence of the Lambs, and Hannibal from an object relations point of view. The victim of childhood trauma involving the killing of his family and the cannibalization of his baby sister, Lecter suffers from posttraumatic stress disorder. Using the theories of Melanie Klein, Harry Guntrip, D.W. Winnicott, M. Khan, as well as Otto Kernberg, this paper explores the reasons Lecter is compelled to kill and eat parts of some of his victims. He is locked in the paranoid-schizoid position, relies heavily on schizoid defenses, such as splitting and projective identification, but is unable to avoid psychotic breaks with reality to reenact his early traumas. Through his reunion with Clarice Starling, Lecter attempts the process of reparation and an entry into the depressive position." [Expanded Academic Index]

" The film 'The Silence of the Lambs' succeeds as a visual narrative due to the depth of portrayal achieved by the lead actors, the fast pacing and the spare but effective use of dialogue. Actor Anthony Hopkins provides the character of psychiatrist and serial killer with a real sense of humanity, while Jody Foster creates a positive image of the independent woman hero. Director Jonathan Demme achieved a densely textured story through lighting and images, while screenwriter Ted Tally reduced the novel's lines to fit the characterization on screen." [Expanded Academic Index]

"Jonathan Demme's film 'The Silence of the Lambs' encourages viewers to question established notions of femininity, homophobia, and the connection between male violence and intelligence. Many connections can be made between the female space provided in the film and that painted by Dutch painter Jan Vermeers. On Vermeer's canvases, the notion of a female space among that of men is at the center of many portraits, and the character Clarice Starling must similarly function within a world of male authority figures, each of which represents a different shape that authority takes." [Expanded Academic Index]

Articles on the role of female detectives in "The silence of the lambs" and "Blue steel"; the rejection of narrative and heterosexual romance in "Die Jungfrauenmaschine"; the rumours surrounding depiction of a real murder in "Snuff"; sexual advice given in tv programme 'Ask Dr. Ruth'; the pornographic past of ex-Pathé head Bernard Natan; reviews of the book 'How do I look? Queer film and video' and videos 'Dykeotomy' and 'Juggling gender'.

Robbins, Bruce.

"Murder and Mentorship: Advancement in The Silence of the Lambs." Uts Review: Cultural
Studies & New Writing. 1(1):30-49. 1995 Aug

Robbins, Bruce.

"Murder and Mentorship: Advancement in The Silence of the Lambs." Boundary 2-An
International Journal of Literature & Culture. 23(1):71-90. 1996 Spring

"The film 'Silence of the Lambs' points to a complex relationship between sexuality and professional advancement. The film seems to suggest that professional advancement depends on the absence or displacement of sexuality, but there must also be an erotic appeal underlying the strong motivation to pursue a profession, suggesting an indirect sexuality in the mentor relationship. An essay by Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak brings out some parallels between 'Jane Eyre' and 'The Silence of the Lambs' in the subordination of sexuality to work. The film also uses the murderer Hannibal Lecter to mediate between the working and professional classes." [Expanded Academic Index]

"The Silence of the Lambs, a film directed by Jonathan Demme, is highly self-conscious both about its own status as film and about contemporary film theory. This film insists that cinematic pleasure, reliant as it is on the mediation of the gaze, is always about taking part in monstrous acts of looking, and is always about threatening to cross boundaries, from exterior to interior, thereby compromising the viability of gendering this gaze. It cannibalizes feminist film theory as it takes one aspect of that theory, the gaze, and in a way consumes it, potentially stripping it of its power and significance. It illuminates the way in which the look has been controlled and contained, not only by film in its practice of representation, but also by film theory in its application. Consequently, the film emphasizes the necessity to liberate the look of both camera and audience, and to do so by revisiting, even reformulating, the very theories that have helped both to establish and decipher the look and its various significations." [Art Index]

Staiger, Janet.

"Taboos and Totems: Cultural Meanings of The Silence of the Lambs." In: Feminist film theory: a reader / edited by Sue Thornham. pp: 210-23. New York: New York University Press, 1999.

Grad Svcs PN1995.9.W6.F465 1999

Main Stack PN1995.9.W6.F465 1999

Also in:

Reception study : from literary theory to cultural studies / edited by James L. Machor and Philip Goldstein.
New York : Routledge, 2001.

Main Stack PN98.R38.R434 2001

Seidenberg, R..

"The silence of the lambs." American Film Vol XVI nr 2 (Feb 1991); p 49-50.

Report on Anthony Hopkins' role in "The silence of the lambs".

Smith, G.

"The silence of the lambs." Film Comment v. 27 (January/February 1991) p. 28-30+

"In an interview, director Jonathan Demme discusses his new film, The Silence of the Lambs, which is based on a Thomas Harris novel. One aspect of Harris's novel that Demme liked and believes he has preserved in his film version is the criticism of patriarchy. Demme tried to be faithful to Harris's characterization of the cannibalistic Dr. Lecter, and along with production designer Kristi Zea, he took pains to create a physical environment for the character that would suggest a step into an imaginative world. He initially conceived the film as rich in close-ups and subjective camera angles and deliberately avoided the modish, brooding look typical of thrillers, aspiring instead to a visual brightness whenever possible to compensate for the heaviness of the story." [Art Index]

Staiger, Janet.

"Taboos and Totems: Cultural Meanings of The Silence of the Lambs." In:
Reception study : from literary theory to cultural studies / edited by James L. Machor and Philip Goldstein. New York : Routledge, 2001.

MAIN: PN98.R38 R434 2001

Sundelson, David.

"The Demon Therapist and Other Dangers: Jonathan Demme's The Silence of the Lambs."
Journal of Popular Film & Television. 21(1):12-17. 1993 Spring. Bowling Green, OH

Examines the film with emphasis on Hannibal Lecter's past career as a psychiatrist, and gives an analytical reading of his relationship with Clarice Starling.

Tasker, Yvonne

The silence of the lambs / Yvonne Tasker. London: British Film Institute, 2002. BFI modern classics.

Main Stack PN1997.S4943.T37 2002

Taubin, Amy.

"Grabbing the Knife: The Silence of the Lambs and the History of the Serial Killer Movie." In: Women and film: a Sight and sound reader / edited by Pam Cook and Philip Dodd. pp: 123-31. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1993. Culture and the moving image.

"The Transvestite as Monster: Gender Horror in The Silence of the Lambs and Psycho." Journal of
Popular Film & Television. 19(3):106-13. 1991 Fall.

Horror films, from "Psycho" to "The silence of the lambs", are driven by images of gender confusion and transvestism.

Thomson, Iain.

"The Silence of the Limbs: Critiquing Culture from a Heideggerian Understanding of the Work of Art." Enculturation: Cultural Theories & Rhetorics. 2(1):(no pagination). 1999 Fall

Trahair, Lisa.

"A Taste for Murder: Aesthetics in The Silence of the Lambs." New Formations: A Journal of Culture/Theory/Politics. 47: 155-70. 2002 Summer.

Wardrop, Stephanie.

"They Don't Have a Name for It Yet: Patriarchy, Gender and Meat-Eating in Jonathan Demme's The Silence of the Lambs." Lit: Literature Interpretation Theory. 5(1):95-105. 1994

Watts, Carol.

"From Looking to Coveting: The 'American Girl' in The Silence of the Lambs." Women: a Cultural
Review. 4(1):63-77. 1993 Spring

Wolfe, Cary. Elmer, Jonathan.

"Subject to Sacrifice: Ideology, Psychoanalysis, and the Discourse of Species in
Jonathan Demme's Silence of the Lambs." Boundary 2-An International Journal of Literature & Culture.
22(3):141-70. 1995 Fall

"Something Wild: Take a Walk on the Wild Side (But Be Home before Midnight)."
In: Terms of endearment : Hollywood romantic comedy of the 1980s and 1990s / edited by Peter William Evans and Celestino Deleyto. Edinburgh : Edinburgh University Press, c1998.

Main (Gardner) Stacks PN1995.9.C55 T47 1998

Evans, Jeff.

"Something new: music as re-vision in Jonathan Demme's 'Something Wild.'." Popular Music and Society 19.n3 (Fall 1995): 1(17).

"The different forms of popular music used in Jonathan Demme's film 'Something Wild' reflects the sociopolitical stances of Audrey and Ray, two of the main characters. Demme uses rap, reggae and New Wave to reveal young generation's effort to counter dominant cultural ideology. Breaking away from the traditional screwball comedy, the film suggests acceptance of open-ended and spontaneous approach to life and rejection of old values, represented by Charlie. Treatment of music suggests possibility for further cultural change, making the viewers conscious of their roles, values and social behaviour." [Expanded Academic Index]

Hark, Ina Rae.

"Fear of Flying: Yuppie Critique and the Buddy-Road Movie in the 1980s" In: The road movie book / edited by Steven Cohan and Ina Rae Hark.
London ; New York : Routledge, 1997
full-text (UCB users only)
Main Stack PN1995.9.R63.R63 1997

"The Culture-Clash Comedies of the 1980s." In: Beyond the stars: Plot conventions in American popular film / edited by Paul Loukides and Linda K. Fuller.
Bowling Green, Ohio : Bowling Green University Popular Press, c1990